(partial text) edited 9/18/01 1:31pm Fascinating. ... As for the wearing of flags and badges, point taken, but people do all manner of impractical, out of character things at such times. Spot on about the coverage. Once the initial horror was over, the repetion of the videos and the voice mail messages and images of beleagured firefighters bordered on the goulish. By Thursday, I'd given up watching news and only watched Newsnight, at least there was some semblance of discussion. Claire, naturally, did a fantastic job on Wednesday night and I learned more listening to her radio programme in 20 minutes than in 12 hours of tv news. I agree with your ... friends comment about children but then America is so prone to over-sentemantalising children. Almost nothing is ever done for its own sake but for its potential benefit for "our children and our children's children" and I suspect that any revenge attacks will have that seal/excusesmokescreen attached to them. That said, for the first time, I'm tempted to go along with the bomb the bastards rhetoric. The only thing that prevents me from really shaking the battle tambourine, and it's quite a big thing, is that I have no idea who the bastards are and the idea of bombing without due process is scary. My feeling about the bomb the bastards approach is more to do with a desire to finally trying to tackle terrorism than any futile attempt at revenge. But then we know that it's unlikely that any bombing raids are going to rid the world of the terrorist scourge and the likely targets have already been the beneficiaries of US foreign policy and are now starving through the consequences. I have no sympathy for the Taliban but likely neither do most Afghans. Then again, if we were wise enough to work out a way to smoke bin Laden out of the hills then we'd be sitting with our feet up in the Oval office instead of watching West Wing on tv. But, before I go, let's finish on Dubya. What a performance. On Wednesday, he was pathetic. By Friday he was loathsome. Don't tell me he couldn't have insisted on being in DC, even if it was in some secure bunker. What the fuck was he doing zipping round the country like one of those alien craft you see on the X Files? Where was Dick Cheyney? In fact, where the hell was anyone other than Karen Hughes? Colin Powell at least struck the right note speaking from wherever he was. Bring on President Colin say I. Or even better, President Rudy. Who'd have thought he and George Pataki would have come through quite so stirringly ? Dubya has simply managed to look startled and bewildered and all the other things that everyone else is feeling but, for God's sakes, he's not paid to do. He's paid to look Goddamn presidential and he failed miserably. And continues to fail miserably. And you can tell your fascist friend that it's nothing to do with party politics. Well not much anyway. Well maybe a little. Ok, a bit more than little. Anyway, suffice to say America (and the world) deserves a far, far better leader than its present incumbent. But I may be proved wrong, let's hope so. So, nothing very profound from me to add to the general melee. And now I'm going to watch something on crime in Jamaica. So much misery. (end)